Please Note: Each coloured link within the articles will lead you to a related topic on a different page of this site. However while the text is part of the original article, the links are not. The authors of these articles may or may not agree with the views expressed on those pages, or anything else on this site..

“... It is difficult to see how some can claim that the Flood of Noah was local and not global. Why work building a great boat for 120 years preparing for a local flood? Why not simply climb the highest mountain or move to a different valley? Similarly, God promised he would never again destroy the earth in a flood like this one, yet great local floods have ravaged the earth down through the ages, killing millions. The Flood of Noah is clearly unique, it was one of a kind”. (On The Great Flood Of Noahby Lambert Dolphin)

Scientists from NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center and Columbia University have uncovered evidence that confirms there was once a massive flood in the northern hemisphere. According to their computer models, the flood occurred approximately 8,200 years ago and resulted in climate changes that decreased the temperature. Their report noted:

The last major abrupt climate change occurred at ~8.2 kiloyears before present (kyr) and is recorded in multiple proxy records across the Northern Hemisphere. Contemporaneously, glacial Lakes Agassiz and Ojibway catastrophically drained into the Hudson Bay, possibly delivering enough freshwater into the North Atlantic to affect the ocean circulation (LeGrande, et al., 2006, 103[4]:837).

Could this discovery be pointing back to the Noahic Flood?

Scientists had previously documented changes in isotope, aerosol, and methane levels—all of which pointed to a major cooling event. The group used a fully coupled atmosphere/ocean general circulation model in an effort to determine what could have caused the climate changes. Their computer model used a flow of water that was equal to between 25 and 50 times the flow of the Amazon River in twelve model runs that took more than a year to complete. While none of the scientists involved in this study would suggest that this data supports the idea of the global Flood they did indicate that the effects of this event were “clearly expressed” in Greenland and Ammersee, Germany. The scientists suggested this catastrophic flood was caused by retreating glaciers. Interestingly, they documented significant decreases in temperature in the northern hemisphere—something that creationists have long suspected would have occurred after the global Flood. Multiple evidences demonstrate that the Earth’s climate has changed, and fossil records indicate that the Earth was once covered with water. The logical conclusion that incorporates all of the available evidence is the global Flood—as recorded in the book of Genesis.

Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, and saying, "Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation." For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. But the present heavens and the earth by His word are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. [2 Peter 3:3-7]

Was the flood which took place in the days of Noah a big flood or a little flood? Was it a worldwide event of cataclysmic proportions or was it a relatively small and localized event confined to the ancient Mesopotamian valley? According to the biblical account in Genesis 6-9 it appears to have been a big flood! The Bible says that "all the high mountains everywhere under the heavens" were covered with water and "all flesh that moved on the earth perished" and "only Noah was left, together with those that were with him in the ark" (Genesis 7:19, 21, 23).

So that settles it! The Bible says it was a big flood. For many Christians no further discussion is necessary. The Genesis account of the flood is literally accepted for what it says: there was once a big world-wide flood. But some Christians don't accept the concept of a worldwide flood. Their thinking parallels the prevailing scientific schools of thought which do not allow for a universal flood as recorded in the Bible. We are not speaking here of "liberal Christians" who dismiss the biblical story of Noah and the flood as just one of a number of ancient Jewish legends contained in the Bible. No, we are referring to evangelical Christians who say that they believe the Bible and that the Bible alone is God's Word. They say that they believe the whole Bible is inspired, that they believe all the Bible teaches, and that they have no problem with the idea of an omnipotent God who could have caused a worldwide flood. But they don't believe that there is evidence for a flood of such magnitude. These Christians say that since there is no evidence other than the biblical information, the Genesis account of the flood must have been written in relative terms. They feel that "all the high mountains" and "all flesh" means that only all the hills and all the life in the localized area between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers were affected by a small and limited flood. They say that the purpose and intendedteaching of the flood account in Genesis is not to give us the size of the flood, but to show us God's judgment on the unrighteous and His care for the righteous.

Well, you may say, what difference does it make? If some Christians want to believe in a local flood, so what? Why make a big deal about it? Because it is a big deal! Although the size of the flood may seem like a minor point, the major doctrines of the inspiration and authority of God's Word are involved!

Let's pick up on the point that the intended teaching of Genesis 6-9 is only to show God's judgment on sin and His preservation of the godly. Certainly this is a major theme of Genesis 6-9, but the size of the flood is also indicated by the inspired text. Even if the extent of the flood were only an incidental point of this portion of Scripture, does the Bible verge on deceiving us in factual matters in order to get across the moral lessons it intends to teach? Does Scripture teach historical untruths along with the moral truths it intends to teach? To accept such a concept of divine inspiration opens the door for all kinds of problems and questions about the authority of the Bible. Doesn't the Bible speak the truth on every subject it touches - including ancient history? And for that matter, since the text includes information about the extent of the flood, doesn't it seem that the Bible intends to teach us something about the magnitude of the flood in Noah's day?

To take the Genesis story of the flood as a description of a local event given in relative terms not only overlooks a number of obvious problems in the account itself, but logically such a position must disregard the view of the flood in the rest of the Bible. Questions such as, "What was the purpose of the ark?" and "Why all the concern about the animals?" and "How could a localized flood last so long?" and "What about God's promise that He would never again destroy the earth with a flood?" are hard questions for the local flood advocates to answer. But a much greater problem for these Christians (who claim to have a high view of the Bible) is how to handle the other Scriptures that speak of the flood.

Reference to the flood of Noah's day is made in several Scriptures besides the account in Genesis, and in each case the context seems to suggest that it was more than a little localized flood. Christians who subscribe to the idea of a local flood are hard-pressed to provide a satisfactory explanation for these Scriptures. The primary flood Scripture in the New Testament is 2 Peter 3:3-7. In this passage three different cosmographies are in view and the magnitude of the flood is one of the essential points that is made by the author.

There was a former "heavens and earth" system up until the flood of Noah's day (v5).

The flood was so catastrophic that it resulted in great changes to that heavens and earth system (v6).

There is now a present heavens and earth system which will be catastrophically destroyed by fire (vs7-12).

And then a new heavens and a new earth will be set up which will never be destroyed (v13).

Certainly Peter, the human author of this Scripture, believed in a big flood, and he obviously expected that his readers believed the same. In fact, Peter characterized people of future generations who wouldn't believe in a world-wide catastrophe as not only short-sighted (v5), but as taking the same position as the unbelieving mocker (vs3-4)! In light of this Scripture, local flood believers must fall back on the idea that Peter, the inspired writer, did not know that the flood was only small and localized, or if he did know it, he "went along" with a worldwide flood for the sake of his argument and audience. Such a view of inspiration allows an inspired writer of Scripture to be ignorant or deliberately deceptive regarding the very point he intended to teach. This is devastating to the doctrine of the inspiration of Holy Scripture. Because the ultimate Author of Scripture is the Holy Spirit, it is blasphemous to say that the inspired human author was mistaken in what he intended to teach. A Christian who believes that the Bible is the Spirit-inspired Word of God must logically conclude that the flood was a big flood.

What about the "other evidence" which local flood spokespersons say is non-existent? Certainly we should expect some kind of extra-biblical evidence to remain from a cataclysmic worldwide flood. Well, there is other evidence for the big flood. Lots of it! How are the ancient flood legends of peoples all around the world to be explained, for example, if there is not the basis of an actual historical event of catastrophic worldwide proportions? The legends, of course, are corrupted accounts of what actually happened, but at least they point to the fact of a big flood in earth's past history! The descendants of Noah, and later the dispersed peoples at the Tower of Babel, would have carried these memories with them and eventually written them down with the various distortions that had crept in along the way. Only the inspired biblical narrative preserves the true account of the big flood.

At the present time it is not known for sure whether the ark is still in existence. There certainly have been many unconfirmed "sightings" over the years. It may be that God will someday let this "other evidence" be uncovered from its place of preservation in the ice of Mount Ararat. The recovery of Noah's ark in its place of "rest upon the mountains of Ararat" (Genesis 8:4), would certainly be Exhibit A for the big flood. However, until that time Christians would be wise not to get carried away by the sensationalism that accompanies every modern expedition for the ark.

The record found in the geologic strata is by far the best evidence for the big flood, other than the biblical account itself. The geologic strata are the layers of sedimentary rock that cover most of the earth's surface. Anyone who has been to the Grand Canyon in Arizona has seen the various layers of sedimentary rock that have been exposed in the walls of the canyon. One can also observe layers of sedimentary rock when they are exposed along a roadway that is cut through a hillside. Sedimentary rock, by definition, is rock that was formed from sediments that settled out of water and then later hardened into rock. The fact that there is so much sedimentary rock on the face of the earth would indicate that the whole world was under water at some time in the past. And the fact that most of the fossils, including those of mankind, are found in the geologic strata is good evidence that the sedimentary rock is the result of a worldwide catastrophic flood which occurred in human history. The idea that the different layers of sedimentary rock and the fossils they contain represent millions of years of gradual accumulation, during which the stages of evolution took place, is beset by many inconsistencies.

All over the earth marine fossils can be found in strata at high elevations. Shells of so-called lower forms of life can be found on mountaintops around the world. This type of evidence does not support evolution but rather suggests a worldwide flood! In fact, the idea that the fossils in the geologic strata are neatly lined up in ascending evolutionary sequence from "lower life" to "higher life" (as some textbook diagrams suggest) is far from the truth. Not only are marine deposits found in the mountains, but "lower life" fossils are frequently found above "higher life" fossils throughout the geologic strata. Geologic faults and thrusts cannot explain away all of these findings, which are obviously inconsistent with evolutionary theory. Often fossils of "lower and higher" forms of life of all kinds are found mixed and buried together in what are called fossil graveyards. All of these variations are exactly what we would expect to find as a result of a worldwide catastrophic flood. Even when the general sequence from "lower to higher" is found in the strata, the big flood model is logically supported. As the flood waters "increased upon the earth" (Genesis 7:18), the less mobile simpler forms of life, which thrive in the ecological zones at lower elevations, would naturally be inundated and buried before and below the more complex forms of life. These more mobile species, including mankind, would naturally escape the flood waters longer and, in general, be entrapped in sediments from later stages of the big flood. Thus they would be found higher up in the layers of sedimentary rock.

Many of the layers of sedimentary rock are quite thick and widespread--covering many thousands of square miles. This is further evidence of the big flood. Such fossil-bearing formations would have had to be formed by water disasters on a scale much larger than any disaster observed today. Only a giant flood as described in the Bible can explain such widespread deposits.

Some of the layers of sedimentary rock are "turbidites" and their presence rein-forces the big flood scenario. Turbidites result from turbidity currents which could be called "underwater mud flows or ava-lanches." They are caused by earthquake activity and are formed in a very short time--hours, not thousands of years. The fact that around the world there are many large turbidites throughout the geologic strata is easily explained by the upheaval of the earth at the time of the big flood, as described in Genesis 7:11. Some turbidites are several hundreds of feet thick and extend for hundreds of square miles. They are impossible to imagine or explain apart from a worldwide catastrophe.

The many parallel layers of sedimentary rock are further evidence of the big flood of the Bible. Whether these layers are horizontal or tilted from later uplift, they are parallel with well-defined contact boundaries which indicates that they were laid down one after the other in a relatively short period of time, not over millions of years. This conclusion is further supported by the observation that there is far too little evidence of erosion between these parallel geologic strata. If the geologic column (the sum total of all the layers of sedimentary rock) indeed represents millions of years of earth's history, one would expect to find much more evidence of erosion in the geologic strata. Polystrate fossils (fossils that extend between two or more layers of sedimentary rock) are further evidence of the rapid buildup of these sediments. If the sediments accumulated only gradually, why didn't the specimens "wear away" before the next layers of sediment completely encased these fossils? Polystrate fossils are exactly what would be expected from rapid sediment buildup during a big flood.

All fossils of any significant size are evidence of catastrophic action. Fossils are never formed by gradually accumulating sediments--they are always formed by quick burial. The fact that many large and intact fossils are found in the geologic strata throughout the world suggests more than many little floods scattered over millions of years. It takes more than a "little catastrophe" to fossilize an elephant! Such fossils strongly support a worldwide catastrophe such as the big flood of the Bible.

Radioactive dating does not support the evolutionary scenario. Radioactive carbon dating, which dates former living matter such as bones or tree trunks, shows a relatively recent age for anything and everything that's been tested. That is, the date of every excavated sample that's been tested, including trees, plants, dinosaur bones or human bones has measured only in thousands of years. (All samples show radioactivity and the halflife of radioactive carbon is only 5,700 years!) This means that these organisms did not live millions of years ago. An explanation given by evolutionists is that these samples were "contaminated" by radioactive carbon which seeped in from ground water. The possibility that this could be true of every sample that has ever been examined is highly unlikely. While there are certain questions concerning the accuracy of radiocarbon dating, "corrected" readings would most likely give even more recent dates! Other radiometric methods used for rock dating are very speculative, especially when it comes to determining the age of geologic strata--that is, the date when the layers were precipitated out of water.

In summary, the fossils and geologic strata are not the record of millions of years of evolution. They are convincing "other evidence" of the judgment of God upon this earth with a worldwide flood! 2 Peter 3:5 states that the evidence for creation and the flood is available to the mocking unbeliever, but it "escapes their notice." It is unfortunate that some Christians feel that they must compromise in this area. As a result, they actually end up in the camp of the enemy. Both the biblical evidence and the extra-biblical evidence for the big flood are hard to miss, but unfortunately it also "escapes the notice" of these Christians who reinterpret both areas of evidence. It is not heretical to speculate about things such as the mechanisms God used to bring about the big flood or to wonder whether high mountains such as Everest were here before the flood or came about as the result of the big flood. But to deny the big flood is to deny God's clear communication! If God wanted to communicate that there really was a big flood, could He say it any more clearly than the way He has already said it in His Word? And what "other evidence" could God give than what He's already given in the geologic strata to show beyond the shadow of a doubt that there really was a big flood!

What a Catastrophe ..(The Seattle Scablands)by Kyle Butt, M.A.

On September 20, 2005, PBS stations around the country aired a program titled “Mystery of the Megaflood,” in which they explored plausible causes for the geological features found in the region 200 miles east of Seattle known as the scablands. In an informative article about the show, the scablands are described as “a vast region of weird terrain, including gorges hundreds of feet deep, enormous pits, huge boulders scattered as if dropped by giants, undulating hills that look like huge ripples, strange layers of silt and ash, and a ‘waterfall’ five times wider than Niagara—but without any water” (“NOVA: Mystery...,” 2005). The puzzling thing about this area is that there is no river running through it that could have caused these features to have formed over millions of years, nor is there any indication that a glacier moved over the landscape.

In the 1920s, a geologist named J. Harlan Bretz suggested that neither a slow-eroding river nor glacial activity caused the massive geological features. “His fieldwork convinced him that the Scablands were not the result of slow geological weathering but of an enormous catastrophe that had taken place almost overnight when a titanic flood engulfed the region” (“NOVA: Mystery...”). His ideas were largely rejected, because they did not jive with the then-prevailing notion known as uniformitarianism—that the present is the key to the past and geologic features are the result of long periods of uniform transformation. Yet, recent research suggests that Bretz’ catastrophic conclusion fits the facts much more sufficiently.

Modern-day geologist Vic Baker has done extensive work on the scabland project. In an interview with NOVA, Baker states that he believes a huge ice dam that held the waters of Lake Missoula burst and caused a megaflood that devastated the landscape. In fact, Baker says that he believes this type of flood happened several times in this area. When Baker was asked about floods in other areas, he mentioned large areas of flooding in Canada, Asia, the Altai and Sayan Mountains in Siberian Russia, as well as areas in China and Mongolia. He stated that the flooding in these regions was “comparable in magnitude, though perhaps not in volume, to the Missoula floods” (“Fantastic Floods,” 2005).

Looking, then, at the NOVA program, we have evidence that the scablands were formed by massive flooding, not by slow-working uniformitarian processes. We also have evidence that other areas around the world, from the Rocky Mountains to Russia and China, were similarly affected by megaflooding that was “comparable in magnitude.”

Of course, anyone familiar with the biblical account of Noah’s Flood would certainly be led to wonder about the possibility that all these various “floods” might not have been localized, but were due to one worldwide, massive inundation. Is it not interesting that geological features and landscapes that uniformitarian geologists once insisted must be the product of millions of years of tranquil, uniform processes are being reevaluated and assigned catastrophic causes? When statements like Baker’s, about massive flooding around the globe, are coupled with the fact that over 200 legends have surfaced in hundreds of cultures throughout the world that tell of a huge, catastrophic flood (See Legends of The Flood), the plausibility of a world-wide flood comes sharply into focus.

Near the end of the discussion of the scab­lands, NOVA asked Baker if there were still many unsolved mysteries in the formation of geological landscapes. Baker commented: “Some people think science is the collection of facts and truths and everything about the world. Absolutely not. Science is about raising questions about the things we don’t know and being very sophisticated about pursuing those problems” (“Fantastic Floods”). Unfortunately, one of the most important questions that the geological sciences should raise often is ignored because of its religious implications. Is there geologic evidence of a global flood? In truth, the answer to this question is a resounding “Yes!” The apostle Peter focused on this issue some two thousand years ago when he wrote: “For this they willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water, by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water” (2 Peter 3:5-6, emp. added). With more and more geological evidences piling up pointing to a global flood, it is becoming increasingly obvious that those who refuse to recognize it as a fact are willfully ignoring that evidence.

The RainbowConsider the following with regard to the token of the rainbow:

And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. [Genesis 1:6-7]

The "firmament" of Genesis 1:6-7 was created to "divide the waters from the waters." This firmament "divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament." The earth was engulfed with a canopy of water.

And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground. [Genesis 2:5-6]

There was no rain before the flood according to Genesis 2:5-6. The earth was watered by a process of evaporation and condensation between the water on the earth and the water "above the firmament."

In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. [Genesis 7:11]

In Genesis 7:11 we are told that "the windows of heaven were opened." Specifically, the canopy of water above the earth began to disintegrate, and continued to do so for 40 days. Add that to "the fountains of the great deep" (water under the surface of the earth) that were broken up, and you have a lot of water suddenly dumped upon the surface of the earth.

So, while the canopy of water was in place over the earth, the earth was never exposed to direct rays of sunlight. It was always diffused by the moisture comprising the canopy.

After the flood, the canopy of water over the earth was gone. Now, direct sunlight did make it all the way to the surface of the earth. Rays of sunshine refracting through pockets of moisture create rainbows. With the canopy gone, rainbows were possible. The rainbow was a sign that the canopy of water that had collapsed, causing the flood, no longer existed. Hence, no more floods were possible as long as rainbows were visible because rainbows were not possible until the canopy of water was removed.

As an aside to this discussion, you will notice that life spans began to shorten after the flood. Some have speculated that it had been the canopy of water diffusing the harmful effects of the sun on one's body that permitted extreme longevity while it was in place. Hmmmm...sounds like a viable theory to me. [Pastor Wayne D. Turner. Commentary on Genesis 8. www.bibletrack.org]